Spring North American Championships Start in Dallas

March 19, 2014

Bridge

By PHILLIP ALDER

The 11-day Spring North American Championships, organized by the American Contract Bridge League, start on Wednesday in Dallas.

The premier event is the Vanderbilt Knockout Teams. Last year’s winners were Sabine Auken, Dennis Bilde and Morten Bilde from Denmark, and Roy Welland of New York City. In the 64-board final against Ricco van Prooijen, Louk Verhees, Sjoert Brink and Bas Drijver from the Netherlands; Kevin Bathurst of Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.; and Daniel Zagorin of Chicago, the Auken team was losing by 1 international match point with two deals to go.

On Board 63, Auken was in three no-trump with a balanced 8-count opposite a 1=4=3=5 15-count. When the clubs broke 2-2, declarer claimed an overtrick. At the other table, Brink played in three clubs. This walked into a defensive crossruff to go down one. The Auken team gained 12 imps.

The diagramed deal was the final board.

In the given auction, Verhees (East) decided to open three clubs, not four. On the second round, Auken (South) was a tad cautious in bidding only three spades, but Welland (North) had sufficient distributional values to raise to game.

Van Prooijen (West) led the club queen. Declarer ruffed in the dummy, drew trumps and claimed 12 tricks: four spades, six diamonds, one club and the club ruff.

If Brink (North) and Drijver (South) got to six spades, it would have taken an unlikely heart-ace lead and heart ruff to defeat the slam. If the slam made, the scores would have been tied, and extra boards would have been required.

Morten Bilde (East), no shrinking violet he, opened four clubs. After two passes, North doubled. Then South understandably passed, preferring the certain vulnerable penalty to the uncertain nonvulnerable game, since an eight-card spade fit was not guaranteed.

South led the heart queen. Declarer (East) won with dummy’s ace, discarded his diamond on the heart jack and threw a spade on the heart ten. After South ruffed, declarer conceded down one, losing two spades and two clubs.

Plus 480 and minus 200 gave the Auken team 7 imps on the board and victory by 135 imps to 117.

Note that even if Brink and Drijver had cashed one club, one diamond and three spades for down two, Auken would have won by 10 imps.